Dubai’s Emirates NBD in talks to buy Turkey’s Denizbank

Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank, said on Tuesday it had started initial strategic discussions with Russia’s Sberbank about a possible purchase of Sberbank’s stake in Turkey’s Denizbank.

Emirates NBD has previously acquired BNP Paribas’ Eygptian banking business and has been scouting for opportunities in the Turkish banking sector for several years as part of its international expansion.

Moscow-based Sberbank was evaluating opportunities to sell its 99.85 per cent holding in the Turkish lender, Reuters reported on Monday, citing sources, adding that banks from the Gulf, including Emirates NBD, and China were among those interested.

Sberbank, Russia’s biggest bank by assets, bought Denizbank in 2012 for around $3.5bn as it was trying to establish a presence abroad.

In a statement on Tuesday, Emirates NBD said the talks were at a very preliminary stage and there was no certainty that any transaction would be completed, adding that a further announcement would only be made if there was a material development.

The bank said it routinely evaluated potential opportunities in different markets.